The disclosure relates generally to the field of surgical instrumentation and more particularly, to a suction device to be used with a tongue blade device for evacuating cauterization tissue and fumes from a patient's mouth during oral laser surgery.
Electrocautery devices and surgical lasers are typically used for cutting or ablating tissues in various confined body cavities. For example, in the surgical treatment of snoring, the surgeon performs a vertical resection of the soft palate on both sides of the uvula, sparing the uvula itself, with further ablation with the laser of the lateral and inferior sides of the uvula to create a “new uvula” that is higher and smaller (uvulopalatoplasty). Electrocautery devices and surgical lasers are also used for reshaping or removing the tonsils (tonsillectomy), and for removing or reshaping posterior parts of the tongue (glossectomy).
During such applications of electrocautery devices and surgical lasers, it is desirable and necessary that the work area be maintained as free from smoke and vaporized tissue as possible. A tongue blade evacuation system can be provided as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,460,626, which is hereby incorporated by reference. It is also necessary that the patient's tongue be kept away from the working area. These requirements are necessary to provide a clear view of the working area for the surgeon.
While existing pharyngeal handpieces remove some of the smoke and vaporized tissue during laser application, they do not remove it rapidly enough to keep the area fully visible for the doctor or to prevent contamination of the lens. Additionally, while existing tongue depressors prevent the patient's tongue from interfering with the operation, they occupy one of the surgeon's hands while not effectively assisting with removal of fumes and tissue during surgery. Further, while the foregoing problems are particularly troublesome with respect to the above described applications for surgical lasers, they are also present to some degree in many other applications of surgical lasers.
In a preferred embodiment, the device is a tongue blade used with a McIvor mouthgag. The device is used intraoperatively to retract the tongue and mandible and open the mouth for surgeries involving the oral cavity/oropharynx. The device is preferably a one-piece surgical stainless steel unit with a built-in suction tube to evacuate any anesthetic gases or noxious/dangerous fumes or plumes generated by electrocautery, or other similar devices. This serves as a protective feature to help ensure the safety of the Operating Room Staff and the patient. It can also be used to oxygenate or jet ventilate a patient intraoperatively by passing oxygen through the suction passage down into the oral cavity/oropharynx. There can be two other variations of the device: a high impact plastic model that is disposable, and a stainless steel model with a removable, disposable suction tubing.
It is accordingly an object of the present disclosure to provide a tongue blade suction device for eliminating or reducing the foregoing problems during surgical applications while providing better overall results.